Free community health fair in Kakaako on Friday

UH medical school fair expected to draw 800

UPDATED 2:02 PM HST Jan 03, 2013

HONOULU -

The medical students of the University of Hawaii at Manoa's John A. Burns Schoolof Medicine are sponsoring the 8th Annual JABSOM Community Health Fair on Friday, Jan. 4 from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. on the grounds of the medical school, at 651 Ilalo Street in Kakaako.

This year's theme is "Kulia I Ka Nu‘u -- Strive for the Summit!"

The heath fairs have drawn hundreds of members of the public to JABSOM every year since they were inspired by the vision of two JABSOM medical students back in 2004.

Today, the MD inter-class council and first and second-year medical students plan each fair, inviting vendors and coordinating exhibits, taking the lead in publicizing the effort with help from the Dean's Office, and inviting public officials to attend as well.

"We believe that an annual student-run community health fair helps JABSOM achieve its mission to train competent and compassionate physicians to serve the unique needs of Hawaii," said Chadwick Council, first-year medical student and one of the 2013 fair organizers. "The health fair provides broad community exposure to health-related organizations and a chance to make a difference in our society."

"These fairs really are a valuable resource, too", said student planning committeemember Meghann Lau, a first-year medical student. "They help us uncover supportavailable to the medical student population and to facilitate networking and outreach opportunities between us and the community and other medical professionals."

"They also strengthen the relationship between the medical school and our community to foster patient-oriented care early in our students' medical careers," Lau said.

The students view the fair as a place to distribute accurate and current information and new health trends to the public and to provide experts in various health fields to discuss current health topics. Those topics may end up being areas in which students can explore research or outreach opportunities.

"We also plan to engage participants with interactive displays and games," Lau added.

The students are planning to attract more than 800 visitors to the campus for the fair, which also will feature the following:

50 booths promoting health awareness

A Blood drive with the Bloodmobile on site

City Ambulance walk-in and tour

Blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose screenings

Influenza vaccines

A Health Information Resources workshop

Free samples of nutritional items

Door prizes for evaluation participation

Zumba & yoga demonstrations

Retina screenings performed by the Project Vision team

There also will be live entertainment provided by JABSOM students.

The John A. Burns School of Medicine, named for a visionary governor, was established in 1965 and has trained more than 4,500 medical doctors through its MD or residency program.

Half of Hawaii's practicing physicians are faculty or graduates of JABSOM or the UH JABSOM Hawaii Residency Programs. JABSOM also offers advanced degrees in Biosciences, Public Health, Communication Sciences and Disorders and trains medical technology professionals.

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